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Photo courtesy CB Group
London-based Lomar Shipping has acquired the Bremen, Germany-based shipowner and manager Carl Büttner for $160 million.
Carl Büttner’s history in shipping dates back 166 years, to 1856, and has been owned and managed by five generations of the Büttner family.
With the acquisition, which closed last week, Carl Büttner (aka CB Group) will become a subsidiary of Lomar, a leading ship-owning and management group established in 1976 with a diversified fleet of approximately 50 vessels made up of container vessels, bulk carriers, and chemical/product tankers. Lomar Shipping, itself a maritime subsidiary of the family-owned Libra Group, specializes in ship ownership, commercial management, and technical management.
“We are pleased to see the acquisition of Carl Büttner successfully completed and look forward to welcoming our new colleagues and their vast tanker management expertise as Lomar enhances its presence in the sector,” said Nicholas Georgiou, CEO of Lomar Shipping. “Our organizations’ cultures share many fundamental similarities, from our long-standing family values to a commitment to developing future talent within the maritime industry. We have a deep understanding of the maritime history in Bremen and are committed to strengthening our presence in the area by welcoming CB into the Lomar family.”
Carl Büttner’s fleet consists seven oil, products, and chemical tankers. In 2017, under the leadership of long-time managing director Thorsten Mackenthun, it launched its most extensive newbuilding program in company history with the addition of four fuel efficient “ECO” handy size chemical/oil product tankers delivered 2019 and 2020. Mackenthun will retire following the acquisition, noting that “after more than 42 years in shipping, this result is a wonderful conclusion, and it is time to pass the wheel into younger hands. CB has had a strong track record in shipping for 166 years, and this deal is a new chapter as part of a trusted company in the space,” Mackenthun said.
Earlier this year, Libra Group’s US-based subsidiary, Americraft Marine, acquired Jones Act shipyard St. Johns Ship Building in Florida, seeing the need for Jones Act-compliant vessels to support the nascent U.S. renewables sector. Libra Group in March also a strategic investment in green energy company GreenMet, which deals in infrastructure development of sustainable supply chains for critical rare earth minerals, such as green steel, to meet U.S. and greater North American green energy and technology needs.
“This deal reflects the ethos and family values shared across our business group. We are pleased that as the Carl Büttner group joins Lomar, a proven maritime leader, it will also benefit from the strength of Libra Group’s network around the world,” said George M. Logothetis, Executive Chairman of Libra Group. “This is an exciting time for Lomar, and we look forward to many innovative and future-thinking announcements to come.”
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